Story Info
Spoilers: Tabula Rasa, Grave, Chosen
Disclaimer: All publicly recognisable characters and places are the property of Joss Whedon, Warner Brothers, UPN . This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks was intended. Previously unrecognised characters and places, and this story, are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Author's Notes: My first Giles/Anya fic. I mainly wrote it because I couldn't believe what happened in Chosen:-O
"Where's Anya?" Giles asked the boy sitting across form him on the bus, gulping in large amounts of air as his gaze quickly scowered the crowded vehicle trying to spy his crazy former business partner before his gaze rested once again on Xander.
Xander raised pain filled eyes to his and shook his head once before dropping it again to rest in his battle worn hands.
Giles slumped back in the seat in shock and closed his eyes.
"Anya, what is it you want? You've been hovering over my shoulder now for the past twenty minutes!" Giles snapped taking off his glasses and throwing them down on the dining room table while rubbing his tired eyes.
"Not hovering! Standing gracefully, like a ballerina, while trying to think of a good way to broach the subject."
"What subject would this be exactly?" he asked turning towards her.
"When this is over I want us to reopen the Magic Box." She grinned.
"What?"
"When this is all over I think we should reopen the Magic Box. You do still own it don't you?"
"Yes, but-"
"I'm an ex-demon now Giles, an outcast from the demon world and a girl's gotta earn a living somehow. Besides I'm good with money and I really liked the time we spent together in the shop. It was fun. And if you want to go back to England, well, I wouldn't really mind, although I do sometimes get lonely on my own. And if you do go back to… wherever it is you go to, we would of course have to discuss a raise in pay. I could hardly be expected to receive the same amount of money for more work, now can I?"
"Anya,"
"And I've been thinking we should redecorate the place too." She started pacing back and forth frowning, "Make it a bit more friendly and brighter, and we'll have to discuss new prices, what with the cost of redecorating and my raise and all."
"Anya!" Giles raised his voice and she stopped mid flow and turned to him, head cocked to one side. Giles cleared his throat. "You're assuming of course that we'll both survive."
"Well of course we will! You're Giles. You'll survive. And of course the beautiful girl always survives these things." She flicked her hair unconsciously as if emphasising the point. "There's no doubt we'll survive Giles, especially me." She smiled and Giles rolled his eyes. She crossed her arms and her brow puckered, "You don't think I'm beautiful?"
"I never said you weren't. You are…quite, pleasing to the eye."
"But not beautiful?"
"Well, yes, you are quite beautiful."
"So you do think I'm beautiful then?"
Giles sighed, "Yes, Anya, I think you're beautiful."
"What do you think is my best feature?" Giles sighed "My fabulously toned thighs or my perfect perky breasts?" she pushed her breasts up with both hands before letting them bounce free.
"Perfect, perky…yes, um…I mean no. No, Anya. If you really must know-"
"And I must."
"I think you're best features are your eyes. They're so expressive and show exactly how you're feeling even when you don't want them too."
She frowned again, "So you think my best feature is my flaw?"
"It's not a flaw, it's quite endearing actually." He looked away and smiled before clearing his throat, "And weren't we talking about the shop?"
"Right! So we kill the big bad and open the shop and…" she became silent for a few minutes and Giles looked up into her worried face.
"What's the matter?"
"Well, what if we don't both survive?"
"I thought you just sa-"
"Oh, I'll live, but well that last time was awful close. What if…what if you don't make it? What would I do? Maybe you should write a will or something, you know leaving me the shop." She suggested smiling.
"That won't be necessary." Giles replied turning back to the spread out papers on the table.
"But I-"
"It's already done." He said quietly. "I revised my will a year or two back. You have nothing to worry about Anya."
She squealed delightedly, jumped onto his lap, much to his surprise, and hugged him.
"Oh Giles! I love you!" she gushed, "You're the best." Her eyes were shining brightly as she looked up at him and kissed him on the cheek.
"Yes as long as I die and you get what you want!" he rolled his eyes and she hit him on the shoulder.
"What was that for?"
"You're meant to say you love me too! One person says I love you and the other says I love you too. It's the way it works."
"Very well. Anya, I love you too. There, are you happy now?"
"You could have at least said it like you meant it." She said haughtily.
"Woman there is no pleasing you! What's wrong now?" her smile had vanished and her face was quite pale.
"I want the shop but I…I don't want you to die. I mean, between you and me, Andrew's a goner, but…well what would I do without you? I've liked having you back with us. It's a bit like when we worked in the shop, though not as good, I can talk to you and know you're listening and considering what I'm saying. If you go who else would I have?"
"Don't be silly girl. You'll have Dawn, Willow, Andrew, Xander and Buffy to talk to."
"No, they're not the same, they think I'm silly and crazy. And, Xander, well things are still a bit weird with us. I guess they'll never really go back to the way it was. And even then he didn't like it when I was talking about my old friends or places I've been. He doesn't like me reminiscing about my past life. And I know I've done some bad things," Giles raised his eyebrows, "Okay, a lot of bad things, but there was some good stuff too, like Venetian Balls and meeting Frankenstein."
"You met Frankenstein?"
"Yes, he has really bad breath." She sighed and collapsed against his chest. "You're just going to have to make sure you live Rupert Giles and that's that."
"I'll try my best." He said softly stroking her hair.
"Make sure you do! It would be very selfish of you to just go and die on me."
Giles chuckled and kissed her forehead. "You really think things can ever go back to the way the were after this Anya?"
"No, not really. But I'd like it too. You and me working in the shop. Me trying to get you to give me the raise I so richly deserve and you trying to stop me from changing the prices once again, even though we're being swindled and you know it! Buffy fighting the vampires and whatever else that happens to pop up until another apocalypse comes along and we all have to fight. Then things go back to normal."
"You've a warped view of what normal is Anya."
"No I don't! And if everyone just did as I said, the world would be a much better place!" she lifted her head from his chest and looked at his tired smiling face. And in his eyes she saw something and felt something inside herself she hadn't seen or felt since that day they'd all lost their memories because of another one of Willow's crazy spells. The day she thought he was her fiancé and had asked him not to leave her. The day he'd kissed her and left her. And then when he'd returned only to scare her half to death by nearly dying on her in their shop when there was still so much…
She stood up, hearing voices and looked at him. "Don't get yourself killed, cos there are things I have to tell you."
He nodded and she turned and left. When she reached the door she turned around and smiled at him timidly before vanishing up the stairs. A few minutes later Andrew entered.
"Mr Giles?" Andrew asked nervously. Giles started, coming out a daze,
"Um, yes, yes. What is it Andrew…and why are you dressed like Red Riding Hood?"
"I thought we could play Dungeons and Dragons, to chill out and relax, so that we don't have to think how we'll all get horribly mangled and killed tomorrow. Amanda wants to play and Xander's gone to get Anya. So, you wanna play?" he asked hopefully rattling the box in the air.
"Very well, but I better win."
He'd always assumed if only one of them was going to make it, it would be her. After all she was determined to and had lived for over a thousand years. She'd only begun to really get used to being human recently and he'd figured it was only fair that if it came, she should live and he would die. She still had so much to experience and see, so much to live for. He looked into the giant crater that was Sunnydale and threw another rock in. He'd never know what it was she wanted to tell him now, and he mourned for all the lost chances and opportunities they had had to really talk, but he could only thank God, that he'd been given the opportunity and good luck to have known such an extraordinary woman and wonder at the fact that at the very least she had considered him a friend.